(kind of) Twilight junkie

I hopped on the Twilight bandwagon pretty early. I didn't pick it up because I heard it was good, the plot intrigued me so I decided to read it (actually I listened to the first three. Ilyana Kadushin, the narrator, isn't the greatest but she's not bad. She has an interesting voice and tries to distinguish between the characters). Then we heard a movie was being made. And you know, I'm not much for following the crowds, but I think the popularity has actually created more of an appeal for me. Seeing the actors grace the covers of all the rags that I see when I'm checking out at the grocery store stirred my desire to see the movie. And I'm gonna see the movie. Except, from the pictures I've seen of the actors, Rosalie doesn't quite live up to the person I was picturing in my mind. Actually, none of the other vampires do either. Their puffy coats and ultra coiffed hair don't scream "seasoned vampire" to me. Let's just hope their acting makes up for it. Are you going to see the movie? Have you already? Tell me what you thought! And please agree that Jasper needs to get a haircut.

I want to read it!! (Get in line, sister)

Gossip Girl doesn't know everything

The other day I was catching up on some quality TiVo time when I started a Gossip Girl marathon. What can I say? I'm addicted. I can't resist the fashion, the music and of course, the drama. I was a huge O.C. fan back in the day, and one of the hidden treasures in this type of show is the music. They play some of the greatest tunes behind all that girl scandal. Gossip Girl introduced me to the Pierces one episode, and the very next day I rushed to our catalog to hunt down their album.

The song I was searching for is the closest thing to a love ballad that a girl like me can stomach. I'd much rather listen to emo-screamo rock then hear Beyonce tell me how she wished she was a boy. But here I was, intrigued. I waited all day long to pop that CD into my car. I was sure I was going to be blown away. Boy, I could not be more disappointed. Imagine old school Gwen Steffani trying to sing with marbles in her mouth with the random cat meow thrown into the mix. That drivel is the core of this album. Having heard "Three Wishes" I don't understand what happened. So, this week, the song I'm featuring is the saving grace of that album, "Three Wishes". Check it out on our MySpace page and you'll see why I went to the effort. Doubt that the rest of the album is as bad as I claim? Check it out and get back to me. Maybe I'm missing something.

In the mean time, I have three wishes of my own:

Wish 1: Gossip Girl will warn us when the albums they feature suck

Wish 2: Gwen Steffani will give the Pierces voice lessons

Wish 3: Ben and Jerry's Chubby Hubby Ice Cream becomes healthier then vegetables

A girl can dream, can't she?

Feed your mind with Sci-Fi

Feed by M.T. Anderson

I’m not a huge fan of reading about spaceships and aliens, but I do enjoy a good sci-fi book. Science fiction doesn’t mean it has to be about big green aliens or UFO’s. Some of the most fun books have elements that are abnormal or strange to our world. One book in particular I think you would like is Feed by M.T. Anderson. It’s about the not too distant future here on Earth. People can take day trips to the moon, and everyone is connected to a super computer that allows them to talk to each other in their minds and shop and buy items they see instantly. Sounds pretty fun, right? Well, it is, for most people. But (isn’t there always a but?) there are some people who don’t react too well to the surgery to get connected to the computer. The story is fun to read because we get to see how normal teens react to not so normal situations. Have you read it already? Let us know what you thought about it!

Check it out.

Stagger into history

The Second Bend in the River by Ann Rinaldi

No doubt about it, historical fiction can be a tricky business. If you're like me, then you hate to read a book that reminds you of sitting in history class. There's a fine line between telling a great story and being bored to tears. So please let me introduce you to a historical fiction master. Ann Rinaldi's words transform historical facts into staggering, moving and motivating stories. Her settings and adventures leap off the page and you will find it hard to put her books down. This particular tale takes an honest look at the life on the Ohio frontier as we step into Rebecca Galloway's world. Based on the real life relationship between Rebecca and Tecumseh, one of the most infamous chiefs of the Shawnee tribe, we see that strong women have been motivating great leaders for centuries. A perfect book to get ready for Thanksgiving, it is easy to be swept away by this love story.

Advice from a bunch of Kooks

For this week's song choice I was completely inspired by a recent trip I took to the United Kingdom. I spent the last week touring London, soaking in the fashion and the stellar accents. Everywhere you go, there are people with their iPhones rocking out to their favorite tunes. I was amazed by how much American music infiltrates British culture and was a little disappointed that I wasn't overwhelmed with new and exciting sounds. Two days before I left I was riding the subway when it stalled out and we were stuck for a good half an hour. While stranded, I ended up meeting three "footballers" from Wales who filled me in on some of Britain's finest modern musicians. The song of the week is called "Naive" and is preformed by a group called the Kooks. I am so glad those rowdy athletes have great taste in music and I hope all you can imagine strolling down cobbled streets and riding double-decker buses when you hear this tune, featured on our MySpace page.

If you are interested in listening to other musicians from the UK, there are other great artists such as the Darknes, Girls that Scream, Lunarblues, Adele, DragonForce, M.I.A, Paul Oakenfold and Coldplay. MPL has many of these artists in our collection, so be sure to visit our branches.

Talk about progressive!

The song of the week for this week is from one of my favorite prog-rock bands, Coheed and Cambria. Progressive rock is not for the faint of heart. It can be intense. What makes this form of rock "progressive" is that an entire album is centered off one central theme. Pink Flyod launched the prog-rock movement with their album Dark Side of the Moon which was completely inspired by space. As the movement grew the music became darker and heavier, and artists started seeking inspiration for more abstract sources. The band Mastodon created a metal album entirely about Moby Dick.

What makes Coheed and Cambria so amazing is that the creators wrote the music as a way to increase sales of their graphic novel series, Coheed and Cambria. The band blew up in the prog-rock metal market, and now the graphic novel series is released in limited addition. No one could have expected that authors could have created such a musical phenomenon.

For those of you interested in beginning your experience with prog-rock, check out Coheed and Cambria's "The Suffering" on our MySpace page. If you fall in love with this band like I did, check out their albums from our catalog.

Get ready to be transported.

The Door Within Trilogy by Wayne Thomas Batson

"The words were scribbled on the wall with thoughts of friends you didn't have" - Coheed and Cambria

Welcome to a series where not fitting in actually makes you a hero! This is the most refreshing trilogy that I have read in a long time. It's as if Harry Potter met Indiana Jones in medieval times. As I read this series, I found myself saying "wow" over and over again. The series also answers a lot of life long questions. Have you ever met someone for the first time and but feel as if you've known them your whole life? Batson and his very motivating characters have a reason for you.

If you're like me and like to listen to music when you curl up with a good book, this series goes great with the Muse's Black Holes and Revelations, in particular the song "Knights of Cydonia". Get your hands on both the CD and the book series by visiting our catalog.